GLOBULAR CLUSTER POPULATIONS: RESULTS INCLUDING S⁴G LATE-TYPE GALAXIES

Zaritsky, Dennis,McCabe, Kelsey,Aravena, Manuel,Athanassoula, E.,Bosma, Albert,Comeró,n, Sé,bastien,Courtois, Helene M.,Elmegreen, Bruce G.,Elmegreen, Debra M.,Erroz-Ferrer, Santiago,Gadot American Astronomical Society 2016 The Astrophysical journal Vol.818 No.1

<P>Using 3.6 and 4.5 mu m images of 73 late-type, edge-on galaxies from the S(4)G survey, we compare the richness of the globular cluster populations of these galaxies to those of early-type galaxies that we measured previously. In general, the galaxies presented here fill in the distribution for galaxies with lower stellar mass, M-*, specifically log(M-*/M-circle dot) < 10, overlap the results for early-type galaxies of similar masses, and, by doing so, strengthen the case for a dependence of the number of globular clusters per 10(9)M(circle dot) of galaxy stellar mass, T-N, on M-*. For 8.5 < log(M-*/M-circle dot) < 10.5 we find the relationship can be satisfactorily described as T-N = (M-*/10(6.7))(-0.56) M-* is expressed in solar masses. The functional form of the relationship is only weakly constrained, and extrapolation outside this range is not advised. Our late-type galaxies, in contrast to our early types, do not show the tendency for low-mass galaxies to split into two T-N families. Using these results and a galaxy stellar mass function from the literature, we calculate that, in a volume-limited, local universe sample, clusters are most likely to be found around fairly massive galaxies (M-* similar to 10(10.8)M(circle dot)) and present a fitting function for the volume number density of clusters as a function of parent-galaxy stellar mass. We find no correlation between T-N and large-scale environment, but we do find a tendency for galaxies of fixed M-* to have larger T-N if they have converted a larger proportion of their baryons into stars.</P>

Dwarf Galaxy Discoveries from the KMTNet Supernova Program. I. The NGC 2784 Galaxy Group

Park, Hong Soo,Moon, Dae-Sik,Zaritsky, Dennis,Pak, Mina,Lee, Jae-Joon,Kim, Sang Chul,Kim, Dong-Jin,Cha, Sang-Mok American Astronomical Society 2017 The Astrophysical journal Vol.848 No.1

<P>We present BVI surface photometry of 31 dwarf galaxy candidates discovered in a deep image stack from the KMTNet Supernova Program of similar to 30 square degrees centered on the nearby NGC 2784 galaxy group. Our final images have a 3 sigma surface brightness detection limit of mu(V) approximate to 28.5 mag arcsec(-2). The faintest central surface brightness that we measure is mu(0,V) = 26.1 mag arcsec(-2). If these candidates are at the distance of NGC 2784, then they have absolute magnitudes greater than M-V = -9.5 mag and effective radii larger than 170 pc. Their radial number density decreases exponentially with distance from the center of NGC 2784 until it flattens beyond a radius of 0.5 Mpc. We interpret the baseline density level to represent the background contamination and estimate that 22 of the 31 new candidates are dwarf members of the group. The candidate's average color, <(B - V)(0)> approximate to 0.7, and Sersic structural parameters are consistent with those parameters for the dwarf populations of other groups. We find that the central population of dwarfs is redder and brighter than the rest of the population. The measured faint-end slope of the luminosity function, alpha approximate to -1.33, is steeper than that of the Local Group, but consistent with published results for other groups. Such comparisons are complicated by systematic differences among different studies, but will be simpler when the KMTNet survey, which will provide homogenous data for 15-20 groups, is completed.</P>

EARLY-TYPE GALAXIES WITH TIDAL DEBRIS AND THEIR SCALING RELATIONS IN THE<i>SPITZER</i>SURVEY OF STELLAR STRUCTURE IN GALAXIES (S⁴G)

Kim, Taehyun,Sheth, Kartik,Hinz, Joannah L.,Lee, Myung Gyoon,Zaritsky, Dennis,Gadotti, Dimitri A.,Knapen, Johan H.,Schinnerer, Eva,Ho, Luis C.,Laurikainen, Eija,Salo, Heikki,Athanassoula, E.,Bosma, Al IOP Publishing 2012 The Astrophysical journal Vol.753 No.1

<P>Tidal debris around galaxies can yield important clues on their evolution. We have identified tidal debris in 11 early-type galaxies (T <= 0) from a sample of 65 early types drawn from the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies (S(4)G). The tidal debris includes features such as shells, ripples, and tidal tails. A variety of techniques, including two-dimensional decomposition of galactic structures, were used to quantify the residual tidal features. The tidal debris contributes similar to 3%-10% to the total 3.6 mu m luminosity of the host galaxy. Structural parameters of the galaxies were estimated using two-dimensional profile fitting. We investigate the locations of galaxies with tidal debris in the fundamental plane and Kormendy relation. We find that galaxies with tidal debris lie within the scatter of early-type galaxies without tidal features. Assuming that the tidal debris is indicative of recent gravitational interaction or merger, this suggests that these galaxies have either undergone minor merging events so that the overall structural properties of the galaxies are not significantly altered, or they have undergone a major merging events but already have experienced sufficient relaxation and phase mixing so that their structural properties become similar to those of the non-interacting early-type galaxies.</P>

STAR FORMATION HISTORY AND CHEMICAL EVOLUTION OF THE SEXTANS DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXY

Lee, Myung Gyoon,Yuk, In-Soo,Park, Hong Soo,Harris, Jason,Zaritsky, Dennis IOP Publishing 2009 The Astrophysical journal Vol.703 No.1

<P>We present the star formation history (SFH) and chemical evolution of the Sextans dSph galaxy as a function of a galactocentric distance. We derive these from the VI photometry of stars in the 42' x 28' field using the SMART model developed by Yuk & Lee and adopting a closed-box model for chemical evolution. For the adopted age of Sextans 15 Gyr, we find that >84% of the stars formed prior to 11 Gyr ago, significant star formation extends from 15 to 11 Gyr ago (similar to 65% of the stars formed 13-15 Gyr ago, while similar to 25% formed 11-13 Gyr ago), detectable star formation continued to at least 8 Gyr ago, the SFH is more extended in the central regions than the outskirts, and the difference in star formation rates between the central and outer regions is most marked 11-13 Gyr ago. Whether blue straggler stars are interpreted as intermediate-age main-sequence stars affects conclusions regarding the SFH for times 4-8 Gyr ago, but this is at most only a trace population. We find that the metallicity of the stars increased rapidly up to [Fe/H] = -1.6 in the central region and to [Fe/H] = -1.8 in the outer region within the first Gyr, and has varied slowly since then. The abundance ratios of several elements derived in this study are in good agreement with the observational data based on the high-resolution spectroscopy in the literature. We conclude that the primary driver for the radial gradient of the stellar population in this galaxy is the SFH, which self-consistently drives the chemical enrichment history.</P>

RECONSTRUCTING THE STELLAR MASS DISTRIBUTIONS OF GALAXIES USING S⁴G IRAC 3.6 AND 4.5 μm IMAGES. I. CORRECTING FOR CONTAMINATION BY POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS, HOT DUST, AND INTERMEDIATE-AGE STARS

Meidt, Sharon E.,Schinnerer, Eva,Knapen, Johan H.,Bosma, Albert,Athanassoula, E.,Sheth, Kartik,Buta, Ronald J.,Zaritsky, Dennis,Laurikainen, Eija,Elmegreen, Debra,Elmegreen, Bruce G.,Gadotti, Dimitri IOP Publishing 2012 The Astrophysical journal Vol.744 No.1

<P>With the aim of constructing accurate two-dimensional maps of the stellar mass distribution in nearby galaxies from Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies 3.6 and 4.5 mu m images, we report on the separation of the light from old stars from the emission contributed by contaminants. Results for a small sample of six disk galaxies (NGC 1566, NGC 2976, NGC 3031, NGC 3184, NGC 4321, and NGC 5194) with a range of morphological properties, dust content, and star formation histories are presented to demonstrate our approach. To isolate the old stellar light from contaminant emission (e.g., hot dust and the 3.3 mu m polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) feature) in the IRAC 3.6 and 4.5 mu m bands we use an independent component analysis (ICA) technique designed to separate statistically independent source distributions, maximizing the distinction in the [3.6]-[4.5] colors of the sources. The technique also removes emission from evolved red objects with a low mass-to-light ratio, such as asymptotic giant branch (AGB) and red supergiant (RSG) stars, revealing maps of the underlying old distribution of light with [3.6]-[4.5] colors consistent with the colors of K and M giants. The contaminants are studied by comparison with the non-stellar emission imaged at 8 mu m, which is dominated by the broad PAH feature. Using the measured 3.6 mu m/8 mu m ratio to select individual contaminants, we find that hot dust and PAHs together contribute between similar to 5% and 15% to the integrated light at 3.6 mu m, while light from regions dominated by intermediate-age (AGB and RSG) stars accounts for only 1%-5%. Locally, however, the contribution from either contaminant can reach much higher levels; dust contributes on average 22% to the emission in star-forming regions throughout the sample, while intermediate-age stars contribute upward of 50% in localized knots. The removal of these contaminants with ICA leaves maps of the old stellar disk that retain a high degree of structural information and are ideally suited for tracing stellar mass, as will be the focus in a companion paper.</P>

UNVEILING THE STRUCTURE OF BARRED GALAXIES AT 3.6 μm WITH THE SPITZER SURVEY OF STELLAR STRUCTURE IN GALAXIES (S⁴G). I. DISK BREAKS

Kim, Taehyun,Gadotti, Dimitri A.,Sheth, Kartik,Athanassoula, E.,Bosma, Albert,Lee, Myung Gyoon,Madore, Barry F.,Elmegreen, Bruce,Knapen, Johan H.,Zaritsky, Dennis,Ho, Luis C.,Comeró,n, Sé IOP Publishing 2014 The Astrophysical journal Vol.782 No.2

<P>We have performed two-dimensional multicomponent decomposition of 144 local barred spiral galaxies using 3.6 mu m images from the Spitzer Survey of Stellar Structure in Galaxies. Our model fit includes up to four components (bulge, disk, bar, and a point source) and, most importantly, takes into account disk breaks. We find that ignoring the disk break and using a single disk scale length in the model fit for Type II (down-bending) disk galaxies can lead to differences of 40% in the disk scale length, 10% in bulge-to-total luminosity ratio (B/T), and 25% in bar-to-total luminosity ratios. We find that for galaxies with B/T >= 0.1, the break radius to bar radius, r(br)/R-bar, varies between 1 and 3, but as a function of B/T the ratio remains roughly constant. This suggests that in bulge-dominated galaxies the disk break is likely related to the outer Lindblad resonance of the bar and thus moves outward as the bar grows. For galaxies with small bulges, B/T < 0.1, r(br)/R-bar spans a wide range from 1 to 6. This suggests that the mechanism that produces the break in these galaxies may be different from that in galaxies with more massive bulges. Consistent with previous studies, we conclude that disk breaks in galaxies with small bulges may originate from bar resonances that may be also coupled with the spiral arms, or be related to star formation thresholds.</P>